Saturday, April 08, 2006

One Man Show in OT

- Michael Nylander single-handedly earned the Rangers the extra point in their come-from-behind 4-3 overtime win in Boston. He won the opening faceoff, then prevented damage from a Jagr turnover with a back check and a solid hit on Patrice Bergeron, dished a tricky back pass to Jagr to break out of the zone, received the puck back (on a perfect pass from #68), did a couple of spin-o-ramas along the boards, put the puck right on Poti’s stick, expertly kicked a deflected return pass right to the tape of his stick, and ended the game with a perfect shot off the underside of the crossbar. He then teased NBC’s Pierre McGuire about all the “shit” he’d given him in Hartford. Expect future games to be shown on a five second delay.

Poti also had the primary assist on Jarkko Immonen’s goal, doing a good job keeping a bouncing puck in the zone, and setting the rookie up for an expertly executed tip-in.

For the third game in a row, Weekes got some help from the crossbar, when Bergeron hit it early in the second period. He could perhaps be faulted on the Bruins’ tying goal, which snuck through the short side after Poti lost the puck at the end of a long shift, but he played with confidence; we see now why he’s always been referred to as a streaky goalie.

Jagr just couldn’t seem to tee up his shot, and was credited with just three; he had many more than that thwarted. Often matched against Boston’s top line, he had an active game in the defensive zone, and was even spotted clearing the puck with 20 seconds left in a penalty kill.

Renney started and ended the third period with the HMO line, and gave them three shifts in between. Hollweg had 13 even shifts for 11:23, all at even strength. This is a trend I’d like to see continue.

It was another light-hitting but effectively workmanlike performance and a well-earned win on the road. Tonight's game against the Devils will be vastly different. With the Flyers going down and the Devils winning in Montreal, it's become ever more apparent that a first-round showdown between the two rivals is in the cards. A win tonight would be a good confidence builder after they dropped the last game 2-1.